Buck McKeon cites gridlock in retiring

A tearful Rep. Buck McKeon on Thursday singled out partisan gridlock as a motivating factor in his decision not to seek reelection this fall, a subtle rebuke of the far-right forces in the GOP pushing for cuts to federal spending even at the expense of the military.

The House Armed Services Committee chairman, whose voice cracked as he vowed to press on in his fight to stave off reductions in Pentagon spending, has led the committee during a tumultuous time for the defense establishment, which has seen its power on Capitol Hill wane with the rise of tea partiers and libertarians in the GOP.

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But the California Republican noted his decision to retire comes after a string of victories for defense advocates in Congress, who dragged a mammoth annual defense authorization bill across the finish line last month amid a partisan Senate spat over amendments — and recently notched a bipartisan budget agreement that staves off sequestration for the next two years.

“What you have is a real problem in trying to get things together, in trying to get things to happen,” McKeon explained during a news conference Thursday morning, saying both parties had shifted toward the extremes over the past few years.

The “biggest motivator” in his decision to retire, he said, was the fact that House term limits would have prevented him from staying on as Armed Services chairman in the next Congress.

“I don’t want to be around here second guessing a chairman,” he said. “I just don’t want to do that. And I don’t want people making comparisons.”

During his emotional news conference in the ornate House Armed Services Committee hearing room, McKeon endorsed his vice chairman, Rep. Mac Thornberry of Texas, for the committee’s top spot next year.

“I think that he will run for the job as chairman, and I think he will win the job as chairman, and I think he will be an outstanding chairman,” McKeon said, noting the decision would ultimately be up to GOP leaders, assuming Republicans retain control of the House.

“I will be gone,” McKeon said. “I will have no say.”

At least two other senior Republicans on the committee are also reportedly eyeing the panel’s top spot: Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio, who chairs the Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee, and Rep. Randy Forbes of Virginia, who chairs the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee.

“Buck has been an unflagging advocate for the men and women serving in Afghanistan and around the globe,” Forbes said in a statement following the announcement. “I look forward to working with him during the remainder of this Congress as we continue to fight for the resources our military needs to meet the threats of the coming decade.”

McKeon’s decision not to seek reelection to a 12th term was long expected and was reported by POLITICO and other media outlets on Wednesday. Making his decision official on Thursday, the 75-year-old congressman said “serving our military men and women has been the great highlight” of his time in Congress.

“Their fight is my fight,” he said.

He informed his fellow Armed Services Republicans of his decision in a members-only meeting on Thursday morning before announcing his retirement publicly in the hearing room with his wife, Patricia, sitting in the front row.

Immediately afterward, he drew praise for his leadership from the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, Rep. Adam Smith of Washington state.

“Buck set a tone on this committee that the rest of Congress should seek to emulate,” Smith said in a statement. “As political tension continued to rise in Congress, Buck stayed committed to bipartisanship.”

McKeon’s Senate counterpart, Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) also plans to retire next year, a decision he announced in May.

Together, the two outgoing committee leaders still must get one more defense authorization bill done to keep alive a 52-year streak of passage for the annual policy measure.